The Skullcandy Crusher Evo Wireless are lower mid-range over-ear headphones designed for bass heads. They're part of the Crusher line of headphones, alongside the pricier, noise cancelling Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 Wireless which are meant to challenge how much bass you truly want to hear. Although they look fairly nondescript, the Crusher Evo's unique haptic bass slider takes songs from a moderate dose of thump, punch, and boom up to intensely powerful rumble with a simple slide of the controls. Their companion app also offers EQ presets and a Personal Sound feature that optimizes sound based on your unique hearing.
Our Verdict
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo are good for neutral sound. Although they're designed to deliver bass, setting the haptic bass to its lowest setting ensures that the rest of the mix isn't completely drowned out by extra thump, rumble, and boom. Still, they're pretty bassy at any setting. Their balanced mid-range also ensures that vocal-centric content stays clear and present in mixes. If you prefer a different sound, they have three additional EQ presets in the Skullcandy app and a haptic bass slider to help you adjust their bass.
- Built-in haptic bass slider and three EQ presets.
- EQ presets available in companion app.
- Sub-par passive soundstage.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo are just okay for commute and travel. They're decently comfortable, and their over 34-hour continuous battery life is suitable for multiple long days on the go. However, they can't isolate noise from bus and plane engines or chatter from fellow passengers, which can be annoying. Also, their bulky design isn't the easiest to bring along with you.
- Good continuous battery life.
- Poor noise isolation.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo are satisfactory for sports and fitness, though over-ears aren't the best choice for this usage. These well-built headphones are decently comfortable, but they aren't intended for wearing during your workouts. They're stable enough for casual listening sessions but may fall off your ears during low-intensity exercises. Also, their bulky design isn't easy to bring on the go.
- Good continuous battery life.
- Not the most stable for physical activity.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo are okay for office use. They're decently comfortable, and their over 34-hour continuous battery life is enough to get you through your workday. However, they struggle to block out background noises in an office, like chatter from nearby coworkers. They also leak a bit of sound, which can distract coworkers if you're in a quiet office setting. Plus, they lack multi-device pairing to make switching between your phone and computer less convenient.
- Good continuous battery life.
- Poor noise isolation.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo aren't compatible with Xbox or PlayStation consoles over a wireless connection. They're compatible with Bluetooth-enabled PCs, but their latency is likely too high to be suitable for wireless gaming. While their latency is a bit lower on mobile devices, it's still quite high for gaming.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo are satisfactory for wired gaming. With their included TRRS cable, you can plug these headphones into your PC headphone jack or Xbox and PlayStation controllers for full audio and microphone compatibility, and they have negligible latency. Their bass-heavy sound profile also helps you feel the deep thumps and rumbles from action-packed scenes in your favorite games. However, while they're decently comfortable, their ear cups can feel warm after long listening sessions.
- Built-in haptic bass slider and three EQ presets.
- Sub-par passive soundstage.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo are mediocre for phone calls. Their integrated microphone has a decent recording quality, so your voice is understandable but also a bit muffled. The mic is best suited for making calls from a quiet environment, as it struggles to separate your voice from background noises in loud and busy settings. They also don't block out much background noise, which can distract you from your call, and their call controls are pretty limited.
- Mic has decent recording quality.
- Good continuous battery life.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Mic has sub-par noise handling.
Changelog
- Updated May 30, 2024: This review has been refreshed, so it's more directly comparable to newer reviews.
- Updated May 23, 2023: We've updated the review's text to ensure accuracy and clarity. However, there hasn't been a change in the scoring of any tests.
- Updated Oct 28, 2021: Converted to Test Bench 1.5.
- Updated Dec 02, 2020: Review published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo come in the following color variants (although some colors may not be available anymore): 'Chill Grey,' 'Budweiser Red,' 'Light Grey/Blue,' 'Rainbow Pride,' 'Collina Strada,' 'Dark Blue/Green,' 'Burton,' 'Midnight Plum,' and 'True Black.' We tested the 'Chill Grey' variant, and you can see the label for the model we tested here. We expect the other color variants to perform similarly. If you come across another variant, let us know in the forums, and we'll update our review.
Popular Headphones Comparisons
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo are straightforward wireless over-ears. They're well-built, and they have an excited sound profile. Like the discontinued Skullcandy Crusher 360 Wireless and the Skullcandy Crusher Wireless 2016, they have a haptic bass slider to help you add more boom and punch to your audio. However, they don't come with a full graphic equalizer, and they have poor noise isolation. If you want active noise cancelling (ANC), you'll need to check out the Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 Wireless—although we've not tested those, you can reasonably expect they filter out more noise than the passive isolation of the Crusher Evo. If you're looking for a different bass-heavy brand, check out the 'XB' offerings from Sony, such as the Sony WH-XB910N Wireless, which cost more but have the added benefit of ANC.
Check out our recommendations for the best over-ear headphones, the best headphones under $200, and the best wireless headphones.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo Wireless are better headphones for most uses than the Skullcandy Hesh Evo Wireless. The Crusher Evo feel significantly better built and have a more neutral sound profile right out of the box. They also have a haptic bass slider and are compatible with the Skullcandy app, which offers EQ presets. However, the Hesh Evo have a more stable fit and a longer continuous battery life.
If you're choosing between the Skullcandy Crusher Evo Wireless and the Sony ULT WEAR, it's likely because you love bass and want headphones that bring the low end. There's no doubt that the Sony headphones are better all-rounders: they're more comfortable and stable, and their ANC system far outperforms the Skullcandy. They even have a longer continuous battery life and support LDAC. That said, it's hard to beat the Skullcandy headphones' haptic bass slider when it comes to outputting bonkers amounts of bass. Although the Sony headphones have two levels of bass accessible via the 'ULT' button, nothing quite beats the pulverizing bass of the Skullcandy when their slider is maxed out. You can also find them for a fair bit cheaper.
The Skullcandy Crusher Evo Wireless are better headphones than the Skullcandy Hesh ANC Wireless. Despite having a haptic bass feature that adds a sensory intensity to bass frequencies, they have a more accurate bass than the Hesh ANC, and their sound profile is more neutral overall. They're also better built and have a longer continuous battery life. However, the Hesh ANC have an ANC system that's capable of blocking out more noise, and they offer a more stable fit that keeps them in place during moderate workouts.
The Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless are, by most measures, better headphones than the Skullcandy Crusher Evo Wireless. However, if you want the haptic bass slider, only the Skullcandy cans have them. Otherwise, both are well-made headphones, but the Sony have noise cancelling and fully customizable EQs. Of course, they're more costly and don't get quite as thumpy as the Skullcandy.
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