Pros
✅ Comfortable
✅ Voice Assistant
✅ Excellent battery life
✅ Modern Design
✅ Adjustable bass
✅ Sound personalization with hearing testing
Cons
❌ Too much bass
❌ ANC is only acceptable
❌ Sound leakage
Overview
The Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 quickly became one of our top picks for best headphones for bass. It has even earned the title of “Best Deep Bass” at Technowant.
What stands out the most about this headphone is its extremely powerful bass, famously known as Crusher Mode. Even though the bass level is adjustable, even at its lowest setting, it still delivers significantly more bass compared to most other headphones.
While its noise cancellation is decent but not outstanding for its price range, the Crusher ANC 2 offers several exciting features that make it a compelling choice.
For our in-depth review, we brought in the Bone and True Black versions of this headphone to Technowant’s testing studio. This article presents our hands-on test results, giving you a detailed breakdown of its performance and capabilities.
Why is Techowant Trustworthy? At Technowant, we scientifically test headphones in our dedicated headphone testing studio to ensure accurate and reliable evaluations. For more details, you can read about our headphones Testing Method.
Design
Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 features a simple, sleek, and modern design. This headphone is available in Bone, True Black, Primer, and Plasma, along with two limited-edition designs: Realtree APX and Possum X Skullcandy. For our testing, we selected the Bone and True Black variants.
The body is primarily made of plastic, but the color choices give it a premium feel. One important thing to note about the True Black variant is that fingerprints easily show on its surface after unboxing. However, they can be wiped off effortlessly with a soft cloth.
A standout design element that differentiates this model from others is the use of orange accents. In the True Black variant, the power button is highlighted in orange, while in the Bone variant, the bass control wheel gets this distinct color treatment.
The ear cushions of the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 are made of soft memory foam, and the ear cups can rotate 90 degrees, allowing for a better fit for users with different head sizes.
Weighing 332 grams, this model is heavier than many competitors. However, thanks to the adjustable sliding headband and thick memory foam padding, the weight is evenly distributed, making it feel comfortable to wear. To ensure long-term comfort, I wore it for two hours straight and found that the weight was not bothersome at all—the weight distribution is truly excellent.
One important design feature that is rarely seen in newer-generation headphones but is present in this model is its foldable design. The Crusher ANC 2 is designed in a way that allows you to easily fold it up and store it in its dedicated carrying case, making it compact and convenient to carry without being cumbersome.
Accessories
The accessories included with this headphone consist of a USB Type-C cable for charging (without an adapter) and an audio cable for connecting to a 3.5mm jack. Additionally, the package includes a durable zippered carrying case, designed to store the folded headphones along with both cables for easy and secure transport.
Controls & Buttons
The Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 features several physical buttons on the earcups for control (this headphone does not have touch controls).
Right Ear Cup:
- Top Button – Increases volume
- Bottom Button – Decreases volume
- Middle Button – Plays/pauses music, answers/ends calls. If held for 3 seconds, it randomly plays a song from Spotify based on your preferences.
- Slider Switch – Toggles between ANC mode, off, and Stay Aware mode.
Left Ear Cup:
- Orange Power Button – Turns the headphones on/off and initiates Bluetooth pairing (on white, red, and blue versions, this button matches the body color).
- Orange Bass Control Dial – Activates and adjusts bass intensity (on the black version, this dial is black). Press and hold for 1 second to toggle Crusher Mode on/off. Tap once for 20% Crusher Mode, twice for 50%, and three times for 80%.
- USB-C Port – Supports fast charging.
- 3.5mm Jack – Allows wired use.
A standout feature of the Crusher ANC 2 is its customizable controls via the Skullcandy app. Users can remap any button to perform different functions. For instance, you can configure the volume up button to activate your phone’s voice assistant when pressed three times.
Voice Commands & Virtual Assistants
One of the standout features of the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 is its support for voice assistants. This headphone is compatible with Amazon Alexa, iHeart, and TuneIn, allowing users to select their preferred assistant through the Skullcandy app and set it as their default.
Additionally, the Crusher ANC 2 can be controlled using voice commands. However, it’s important to note that commands must be spoken exactly as programmed—even adding or omitting a single word may prevent the command from executing properly.
Sound Quality
This headphone is designed for bass lovers, featuring 40mm drivers with a frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz and haptic drivers. Naturally, when you listen to music with this headphone, the most prominent sound that catches your attention is the bass. But the real game begins when you activate the Crusher mode on the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2.
The Crusher mode has 10 levels, and the more you increase it, the more intense the bass becomes in your music. You can activate the Crusher mode either through the Skull-IQ app or by pressing the control wheel on the left earcup, which also allows you to adjust the bass level by rotating it.
When this mode is activated, frequencies between 40Hz and 200Hz—which belong to the bass range—are amplified. The higher the Crusher level, the more these frequencies increase. Interestingly, the frequency response graph below reflects only a 20% Crusher activation level. During our frequency response measurements, we discovered that when the Crusher level is set to 80%, the dB level at frequencies between 50Hz and 80Hz exceeds 20dB, going beyond the limits of our frequency response graph.
An important point to note is that when the Crusher mode is activated, sub-bass frequencies (below 40Hz) actually decrease, while the bass frequencies experience a dramatic boost.
Frequency Response Chart
Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 Listening Test
For the listening test, I decided to conduct it myself first. I played Artemas – I Like The Way You Kiss Me on the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2, with the Crusher set to level 2 (20%). (This track falls somewhere between pop, dance, and trance, and has a high tempo.) It felt as if the mix of the song had been altered—the drums and bass were overwhelmingly loud, making the other elements of the track barely audible.
I then decided to increase the Crusher level beyond 40%. At this point, the bass began to overpower most mid-range frequencies, including organs and synthesizers, and the vocals became less distinct and clear. When I raised the Crusher to 80% and beyond, it literally felt like my skull was vibrating, and it became intolerable. I had to take off the headphones after just 20 seconds.
Even with the Crusher mode turned off, these headphones still deliver significantly more bass compared to other models. However, the vocals do not sound as clear or sharp as they do on headphones like the Sony WH-1000XM5.
Next, I decided to test an acoustic track with minimal bass and played the beautiful song Benson Boone – Beautiful Things. Since this track has very little bass in the beginning, the guitar sounded warmer through these headphones, but the vocals were slightly recessed, as if they were coming from behind a thick curtain.
When the electric guitar and drums kicked in at 1:26, the acoustic guitar became almost inaudible, and the vocals became even more muffled. The only elements that stood out were the overpowering bass and the kick drum.
After this test, we proceeded with the listening evaluation that we always conduct at Technowant. Nine individuals, representing nine different groups in society who are among the most frequent headphone users, tested this headphone and rated it on a scale from 1 to 10. You can see the resulting chart below.
Isolation & ANC
Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 Isolation
The Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 does not perform well in isolation and active noise cancellation relative to its price. Our isolation test revealed that this headphone struggles to effectively block out noises below 400 Hz, indicating that the ear cup design and materials used are not well-suited for isolating low-frequency sounds. However, its performance in isolating frequencies between 4,000 Hz and 10,000 Hz is decent. When wearing these headphones on a bus or airplane, external sounds are somewhat reduced but not eliminated. In noisy environments or conversations nearby, you can still make out what people are saying with a bit of focus.
ANC
Despite utilizing a four-microphone noise cancellation system, the active noise cancelling (ANC) performance of the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 shows little difference from passive isolation (i.e., ANC turned off), except in low-frequency ranges. If you examine the chart above, you’ll notice that ANC only makes a noticeable impact between 50 Hz and 800 Hz, while from 1,000 Hz to 20,000 Hz, the two curves are almost identical.
Stay Aware Mode
An interesting finding from both our listening tests and studio measurements is that there is little difference between the isolation mode and the Stay Aware mode. This further highlights the weakness of this headphone’s noise-canceling capabilities.
Sound Leakage
Another major downside is the significant sound leakage from this headphone. At high volumes, sound leaks out completely, and anyone sitting nearby can easily hear what you’re listening to. This can be annoying for both the user and those around them, making it a major drawback for this headphone.
App
User Interface
Some of the most exciting features of the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 are integrated into the Skullcandy IQ app, which also provides essential firmware updates. We highly recommend installing this app for the best user experience.
Upon installing the app, we encountered an issue on the very first screen. To agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, users must slide a circular button from left to right—a design choice that isn’t immediately intuitive and may confuse first-time users.
If your headphones are already paired with your phone, the app will open directly to the main menu. If not, you can pair the headphones through the app. However, keep in mind that the app will only function if your phone is already connected to the headphones.
At the top of the main menu, you’ll see an image of the headphones along with the battery percentage. Below that, various features and settings are displayed in a tile-based layout. The app offers several customization options, with some of the most important ones highlighted below.
EQ Settings
For sound customization, the app includes a 5-band equalizer, allowing users to adjust audio settings to their preference. While our team found that the EQ isn’t highly precise, it works well for basic sound adjustments. (Note: This EQ operates independently of the Crusher bass feature.)
In addition to the equalizer, there are three preset modes that you can apply: Music, Podcast, and Movie.
- In Music mode, the EQ and overall sound signature remain largely unchanged.
- In Podcast mode, the bass is significantly reduced to the lowest possible level, while frequencies between 1,000 Hz and 5,000 Hz—the range of human speech—are enhanced for better clarity.
- In Movie mode, the equalizer is adjusted to mimic the experience of watching a movie in a cinema. However, it does not perform this function particularly well.
Sound Personalization with Mimi Sound
One of the biggest strengths of the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 is its collaboration with Mimi Sound, which has truly revolutionized the headphone’s sound personalization. You can adjust the headphone’s sound based on your age simply by entering your year of birth. Even more impressively, the app includes a hearing test, allowing the sound to be customized specifically to your hearing profile. Initially, we were skeptical about how well this feature would work, but after taking the test, the audio quality noticeably improved, which genuinely surprised us.
Adjusting ANC and Stay Aware Mode
In the Hearing Mode section of the app, you can fine-tune both Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) and Stay Aware Mode. However, it’s important to note that this does not significantly improve ANC performance, as the noise cancellation remains weak overall.
Additional Features
✅ Spotify Tap – Integrates directly with Spotify for quick playback.
✅ Take a Photo – Allows you to use the headphones as a remote shutter for your smartphone’s camera.
✅ Multipoint Connectivity – Supports Bluetooth 5.2 and simultaneous connection to two devices.
✅ Find With Tile – Enables built-in Tile tracking to help locate the headphones if they’re lost.
✅ Crusher – Lets you adjust the intensity of the bass effect.
✅ Button Customization – Provides nearly full control over button functions, allowing you to assign custom actions to the physical controls.
Microphone
In our initial microphone quality test, conducted in a studio environment, we found that the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 is suitable for voice calls.
The microphone delivered relatively clear and good sound quality, both in a noise-free setting and while playing busy street noise in the studio during testing. The headphones effectively reduced background noise to a significant extent.
To further verify this, we sent one of our team members outside and called them while they used the headphones for the conversation. The microphone quality was satisfactory.
However, it’s important to note that the microphone performance does not match that of professional call center headsets.
Below, you can find audio samples recorded with the headphone’s microphone, both in a quiet environment and with street noise in the background.
In Studio:
In Street:
Battery Life
The Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 performed exceptionally well in our battery life test, proving that the company’s claim of 50-hour battery life is entirely accurate. In our tests:
With ANC turned on, the headphones lasted approximately 47 hours. With ANC turned off, they lasted an impressive 59 hours—which is truly outstanding for a pair of wireless headphones.
Additionally, the Crusher ANC 2 supports fast charging, allowing you to get up to 4 hours of playback with just 10 minutes of charging.
However, two factors slightly lowered this headphone’s battery score:
- No Auto Power-Off Feature: Unlike many competitors, these headphones do not turn off automatically when not in use. If you forget to switch them off, the battery will continue to drain.
- No Auto-Pause When Removed: There’s no sensor to pause music automatically when you take the headphones off, which is another drawback compared to rivals.
Final Verdict
If you’re looking for powerful bass, this headphone is undoubtedly one of the best choices for you. Not only does it offer intense bass, but it also comes with impressive features such as adjustable bass, long battery life, a comfortable and modern design, voice controls, an advanced app, and more.
Another group of users who might enjoy this headphone are those who listen to older songs that, compared to today’s music, lack high-quality production. This headphone enhances the bass in such tracks, giving them a fresh, remastered feel (almost like they’ve been remixed!)
However, if your top priorities are audio clarity, professional-grade active noise cancellation, and excellent microphone quality and you’re not a fan of extremely heavy bass then, to be honest, this headphone is not the right fit for you. Instead, in this price range, you might consider the Sony WH-1000XM4, which would be a better option for your needs.
FAQs
Yes, you can consider alternatives like Sony WH-1000XM5, SONY ULT WEAR, and SONY WH-XB910N as replacements for this headphone.
Due to its excessive bass and relatively heavy weight, we do not recommend this headphone for workouts.
Yes, thanks to its modern and minimalist design and long battery life, you can comfortably use it at your workplace.
Yes, if you urgently need to use the headphones and the battery is empty, you can plug them in and use them while charging. However, this may negatively affect the battery’s lifespan over time.
