Headphone Reviews

The above plot shows the Crossfade Wireless raw frequency respons plots compared to the raw response plots of the Crossfade LP, LP2, and M-100. Using the dip between 400-500Hz as our baseline reference point, we can see that the LP2 has the largest differences with the deepest dip around 6kHz and characteristically different dip at 2kHz. Disregarding the LP2, the remaining curves are fairly similar, with the Crossfade Wireless having the most elevated response in both bass and treble (it's the most "V" shaped); the M-100 has the next highest bass response (though better extended), and is more even (less extreme ups and downs) in the treble; and the LP has the least bass. But all four plots remain fairly similar to each other.

The reason I bring up these plots is that V-MODA very intentionally indicates they build headphones with two different tunings. From their FAQ:

What's the sound difference between the Crossfade LP, Cropssfade LP2, and Crossfade M-100?

The Crossfade LP and LP2 are part of our "Live Series" with heavy bass, while the Crossfade M-100's and M-80's are part of our "Modern Audiophile" M-Class with more refined mids and highs.

Well, that's not what my ears and measurements are telling me. To my ears all of the V-MODA over-ear headphones have too much bass—which is why even though I recommended them, my M-100 review specifically said they were basshead headphones. For reference, I'll insert my estimate of the Harman headphone target response curve here.

As you can see, the V-MODA headphones do have a curve somewhat similar to the Harman response, but it's significantly exaggerated. Both the bass and the peak at 3.5kHz are at least 5dB higher than the target response. I'll also note that the M-100 has the most restrained peak at 3.5kHz making it the least offensive and "V" shaped to my ears. The bass hump also bleeds into the mid-range about an octave too far.

When I listen to these headphones as a family I hear a lot of bass emphasis that bleeds up into the lower mid-range, and I hear some sparkle in the treble, but most of the mid-range is too recessed for me to enjoy the music. While these headphones aren't recklessly uneven and do, to some extent, approach the target response curve, they are far to "V" shaped for my music listening.

The thing that really gets my goat though is that V-MODA advertises two different tunings in their headphones when, to my ears and measurements, there's very little difference between them. And they indicate they try to appeal to, or more correctly, redefine tastes for the "modern audiophiles" with this tuning. Well, I think I'm a modern audiophile, and I find these headphones very colored, bordering on abusively so for my music. I would suggest that a better example of a similar tuning but one not so extreme would be the Master & Dynamic MH40, which, even though somewhat colored, I found to be surprisingly pleasing.

But...

In my world, wireless headphones spend more time reproducing phone conversations and movies than music. And, I have to admit, I find these applications to be significantly less sensitive to deviations from neutral—especially if those deviations increase the bass for some extra thump, and increase the treble for extra speech intelligibility. The Crossfade Wireless does just that, and when watching movies and talking on the phone, I find them a perfectly acceptable headset.

Voices have a little extra bloom in the bass, which to my ears gives dialog a little extra rhythm and pace. Sort of like how you know Charlie Brown's teacher has a voice even though it's just a trumpet going, "Wa wa-wa-wawa wha wa-wha." A bit of extra bass in a voice gives it a bloom that modulates with the rhythm of the spoken words. Speech intelligibility is also enhanced with the sparkle in the treble at both 3.5kHz and 10kHz, while the suckout centered at 6kHz prevents these headphones from becoming overly strident during harsh sound effects (car crashes, guns, wind). Add to this audio utility the ability to switch to the cable when the battery runs dry and still have a very similar sound signature, and I found myself happily using the Crossfade Wireless quite often as a headset.

I have to note that in Bluetooth mode the Crossfade Wireless do seem to create a bit more noise than I've experienced with other BT headphones. It's usually not a problem, but I did hear it when the program material was low in volume.

A Little Side-Note
I may have been a little harder on V-MODA than I normally would be to a manufacturer in this review...but the issue of neutrality has me somewhat on edge lately. There are many manufacturers who I find much more flagrantly abusive in their marketing communication, and V-MODA, though they may tend toward the bass-heavy side of things, generally do a terrific job of manufacturing a high-quality product.

Doing this review I realized that I do have a lot to say about the issue of neutrality. While I don't think we'll be able to find neutral exactly, because it's very difficult to define precisely, and while I think there's a few dB of wiggle room to allow for personal tastes and interpretation, I do think neutral exists in principle and it's a worthy goal to have in mind. Honoring the original artistic intent with high-fidelity reproduction (not editorialization) is, in my mind, the highest priority goal of audio gear.

Re-defining neutral for modern audiophiles, or for any other reason, is fraught with the peril of expectation bias—it's very easy to buy your own act. This is a difficult time for headphones: there's a lot of work to be done to get them sounding better, and the market isn't particularly good at rewarding good sound quality with strong sales. I get concerned when I see companies adding confusion to that equation. I've seen too much of this lately and I'll be posting more on this issue very soon.

Summary
Like all V-Moda headphones, the Crossfade Wireless is terrifically well built, has a strong sense of style, is very nicely accessorized, and is comfortable to wear. It's also quite unusual in that its characteristic sound changes very little when going from powered Bluetooth mode to passive wired use.

Unfortunately, its bass-heavy and slightly emphatic and uneven treble character gets in the way of music listening enjoyment for me. On the other hand, these same sonic characteristics seem to work well for movies and telephone communication.

I'll give a guarded recommendation for the Crossfade Wireless. If you're a basshead, you'll probably love these headphones. If you simply want a quality headset for movies and phone calls, these headphones compete pretty strongly against much more expensive wireless cans like the Sennheiser Momentum Wireless. But if you're looking for Bluetooth cans that sound really good, I'd check out the Ausdom M05 for $51. Yes, I'm serious.

Video

Resources
V-MODA home page and Crossfade Wireless product page.
Head-fi reviews and thread.