Review: Skullcandy’s Hesh 2 Wireless Headphones Are Not Worth It

This wireless headphone also doubles up as a wired one.

Skullcandy Hesh 2 Wireless headphone. (Photo: The Quint)

I’ve always admired Skullcandy’s audio output and their fetish for the thump of bass. Some of their recent not-so-expensive wireless earplugs have worked in the same fashion, so when we got our hands on the Hesh 2 Wireless, we had similar hopes, with surety of what the brand stands for.

Hesh 2 Wireless headphones can also be used in the wired avatar (for PC usage), which also saves you on the battery front. For Rs 8,499 we find out if the Hesh 2 wireless justifies its price with its audio quality.

Pros:

• Sturdy, rugged design
• Wireless and wired options
• Decent audio quality
• Reliable battery life

Cons:

• Can’t wear for long duration
• Mediocre bass output
• Not worth the price

What’s Good?

The Skullcandy Hesh 2 wireless has been built to last a long time. The rugged nature of this headphone makes sure you’ll never feel guilty for spending around 8K or question its durability. There is nothing flimsy about the Hesh 2, which can only be a positive for users.

What I also liked about these is the option to switch between wireless and wired options.

Skullcandy Hesh 2 wireless is built to last. (Photo: The Quint)

The overall sound quality keeps us interested, as long as you do not push its acoustic boundaries by raising the volume levels too high.

Skullcandy says that you get up to 15 hours of battery life with the Hesh 2 wireless which may be a hard act to follow. We used the headphone in wired/wireless mode and managed to get the Hesh 2 going for over 8 hours, which jumped to 10 with the wired option.

What’s Bad?

The sturdy nature of the Hesh 2 doesn’t work in favour of users who’re keen on buying a pair of cans that can be worn for long durations. Anything that costs as much as the Hesh 2 needs to offer more in terms of comfort, making it wearable without feeling the weight of it. The size of the cushion doesn’t help this over-the-ear headphone either.

Wired or wireless? Hesh 2 works in both ways. (Photo: The Quint)

Skullcandy is renowned for bass, but with the Hesh 2, all we can say is: Where is the bass?! We got the answer to that only after pushing up the volume level, which resulted in heavy distortion. Not sure anybody would willingly sign up for that.

The size of the cushion won’t please many. (Photo: The Quint)

For Rs 8,499, we’re happy to see a wireless Skullcandy headphone, but no thanks. This one’s riddled with too many issues. Quality headphones with comfort cost upwards of Rs 15,000 and we’re still a long way from getting one of those at a sub 10K price point.

Why Buy It?

It’s hard for us to recommend the Skullcandy Hesh 2 wireless headphone. This one, for some weird reason, lacks the oomph of bass at mid tones that Skullcandy is known for.

We expect much better from Skullcandy. (Photo: The Quint)

You can’t wear them for too long either, so the selling point of a long battery life doesn’t measure up. For Rs 8,499, we’d rather have you buy a traditional wired pair of cans from brands like Sennheiser or JBL, just for the sake of their audio output.