Skullcandy’s are very popular in New York. A city that loves to add fashion and flare to everything, Skullcandy headphones are the easy choice. But how is the quality on these headphones? With varying price points, you have an idea what to expect when it comes to the headphones. Skullcandy is trying to step their game up when it comes to audio quality without sacrificing style. I took some time to review the Skullcandy Navigators. How do these measure up in both design and sound?
Skullcandy Navigator – Design
When I think of Skullcandy, I think of mostly plastic teen-styled headphones in a wide arrangement of colors and sizes.
They come off as headphones for outfits, more than headphones for sound. I must say that I loved the look of simplicity the Navigators gave off at first glance. They didn’t have the plasticky feel or look that I associate Skullcandy with.
If you’re familiar with the Skullcandy Aviator’s you will see the inspiration of the Navigator’s style. It has more of a retro look. They are smaller, sleeker, less “in-your-face” headphones
Even though they are much smaller than the aviators the ear-cups are just the right size (for my ears at least). The cushioning on the inside of the ear-cups has the Skullcandy skulls outlined with the mesh. The outside of the ear-cups are in the shape of aviator glasses. They are shiny black plastic with a silver outline. The minimalistic look is nice. It’s stylish over the ear without the huge boldness in shape or color. They are on-ear which is comfortable for me.
The headband is pretty simplistic. There’s a bit of cushion, but not much, I’m assuming because the entire headset isn’t heavy they didn’t want to add more weight. It’s made of plastic. You can adjust them easily with the metal extension rods. While they don’t get heavy, they could get uncomfortable after listening for a long time. But I think that’s true of every headphone.
Like the rest of the headphones the cable is pretty simple. It has the three control buttons and a mic. Of course you will see the Skullcandy logo in the center of the controls. It’s detachable for easy storage. It’s flat and is matching black like the Navigators. The cable seems durable since it’s nylon braided. I didn’t’ think that cable would make it in the jungle of my bag. To protect it from the chaos, I always put it away in the carrying sleeve. I suggest you do the same.
Sound and Experience
Before I go into the sound experience with the Navigators, let me remind you that I do enjoy bass. I just don’t enjoy too much of it, where it overrides everything else. I do not need my head thumping as I am on my way to work early in the morning. I just wanna feel the groove! Skullcandy delivers when it comes to the bass level that I like. Enough to get you going on a good beat without taking much from the vocals. They are still mostly crisp and audible. This must be because of Skullcandy’s 40mm drivers and advanced acoustic chamber.
Tracks Tested With the Skullcandy Navigators
When listening to Michael Jackson’s “Dangerous”, neither the beat nor vocals were shortchanged. The percussion and pop were moving without being overbearing on Michael’s voice. When listening to Allure’s – All Cried Out, it was easy to get lost in melody and voices. “Real Thugs” by Eazy E (featuring 2pac and Ice Cube Explicit Lyrics) has a bass heavy beat. At certain points it was too much for the Navigators to handle, but for the most part they did a good job. It was easy to rock out to Poison The Well’s “12/23/93”, but I felt it couldn’t get both the vocals over the electric guitar. It was usually one over the other. The guitar is commanding in this song regardless. Romeo Santos – “Promise (featuring Usher)” came in nicely without their high pitched vocals becoming overbearing.
The fact that they are on-ear means that you’re not listening to your music privately. The ear cups don’t hug your ears so if you put the volume higher than mid capacity, the sound will bleed and people near you will be able to hear your music. The question is: do you care?
Navigate Your Music With These Headphones?
I listen to music for about nearly 2.5 hours a day. I won’t say that I am an audiophile completely, but I’ve had the opportunity to listen and test headphones of many price and quality levels. The Skullcandy Navigator’s really give you exactly what you pay for. For $99 you expect more than mid-range, but you sacrifice superior quality and sound of $300+ headphones.
If you’re into listening to the clear definition of the mids and lows you won’t be satisfied with the Navigators. If you want a more BOOM / loud type listening experience, you might go with the Navigators’ sibling the Aviators.
All in all, the Skullcandy Navigators are great as go-to “everyday” headphones. They are not at all near low quality, but they won’t empty out your pockets in return for decent sound quality. They are comfortable and stylish. They are extremely lightweight. They won’t draw too much attention. If you’re into using your headphones as part of your daily outfit or add-on accessory, (as you see many people are wearing them around their necks as a fashion accessory, instead of putting them away when not in use), Skullcandy Navigators are a great choice. These go great with everything since they are shiny black with the very complimenting aviator style. There are many colors to choose from, I’d get them again in pink, but these really are great in black.
You can buy the Skullcandy Navigators at: Skullcandy website for $99
Have you had experience with Skullcandy? With which headphones? If you’ve tried out the Navigators let us know what you think!
